


Snow Globe

by Tallihensia



Category: Smallville
Genre: Amusement, Ficlet, Fun, Future Fic, Hope, M/M, Pre-Slash, Reconciliation, and the stuff, clexmas stocking stuffer, i don't actually say, mixed with DCU, not too future, oh boys..., read what you will, sort of, that explains all the purple and green, well could be slash from before
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-10
Updated: 2017-01-10
Packaged: 2018-09-16 13:23:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9273671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tallihensia/pseuds/Tallihensia
Summary: An explanation for the green and purple and the things Lex has as a super-villain.  With some inter-stellar mixture and alien views, and a very different world.  All things are possible, in the future.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a Clexmas stocking stuffer, about a future that seems bleak but there is hope in remembering the past. And it kindof got a bit away from me {cough} so it's a wee bit long for a stuffer. ^^;; (They're only supposed to be 1k max. Oops.)
> 
> Somewhat based on the image I made for this year's [Clexmas](http://clexmas.livejournal.com/).  
> 

## Snow Globe

"Do you have them?" Lex Luthor calmly regarded the marsh-slimed alien in front of him and made his demands.

With a hand as twisted as sea grass yet surprising agile, the alien put a box in front of him. "As promised."

Lex opened the box and took out the brace of ray guns. They were enameled in a gaudy luminescent set of green and purple colors that made his soul wince at internally, but he showed no signs of it externally. Sadly, it seemed those were becoming his theme colors, with him buying from this merchant so often. 

He inspected the guns, finding them in as good an order as he could make out, with a full charge each. Lex put them down and took out the manufacturing instructions, running his eyes over the specs. "Five minute stun?"

"On Earth humans," the alien clarified, "or that same physiology." He pulled out another box. "The extra chargers."

The chargers were in a slightly deeper florescent green that made Lex grin. "Oh, those are nice."

Eyelids like fussy mops dropped over huge yellow eyes in a slow blink, but the merchant didn't ask. Instead, he waited until Lex was done.

"Are you prepared for payment?" The alien asked.

Lex closed the boxes. "I am." He reached inside himself for calm, centering his mind and body. "What do you require?"

The merchant pushed over an empty globe, nothing but white swirling inside of it. It looked, for all appearances, to be a snow globe. "A moment of unity, of desire, of the feeling that there can be more out there if one just reaches out for it with the right other."

Lex blinked, startled out of his calm. That was... "You want another in this?"

The merchant nodded. "We have been getting requests... This is the coin."

"Well..." Lex thought about it. There was really only one period in his life that fit the requirements, and it was one he didn't like to think about often. 

He settled his gaze upon the boxes. The ray guns were really very nice. And he had a reputation to maintain, and this merchant was very good at getting him what he asked for.

"Okay." Lex resettled himself in his mind, and reached for the globe.

...

"We've finally found the merchant that Luthor has been dealing with," Green Lantern announced solemnly. 

"Oh, thank the goddesses," Wonder Woman said with feeling. "That new ray gun of his..."

Superman grimaced. "Have you talked to him yet?"

"Well, it's a morphology classification 3.7, which technically makes it both a he and a she, but could also be a zhe in the right cir---"

"John."

Green Lantern stopped. "No. It's not... We should probably go together. You can talk to him about Luthor and why he shouldn't be selling to him better."

Superman and Wonder Woman exchanged a glance. "What's the problem?"

"It's..." Green Lantern sighed. "It's a children's toy store."

...

While Green Lantern argued with the proprietor, Superman wandered the curved aisles of the store.

"The ray gun is **harmful** to humans."

"The zaps are manufacturer guaranteed not to cause harm. Among our species, it produces only a slight stinging sensation. For other species, it varies, but the five minute stun on humans is well within the limits set out by the interstellar federation toy regulations. All customers sign an agreement when they buy the products not to use them outside manufacturer guidelines."

Superman wandered back over. "Can I see that?"

While Green Lantern went on to the next point, Clark scanned it quickly. Lex Luthor's signature was clear on the bottom, and he had not, actually, broken any of the agreements in the paper. 

"GL, I don't think we can do anything here." Clark gave the paper back to the proprietor.

John turned to face him in disbelief. 

Clark shrugged. "It's all legal. It may not be tech from Earth... but that's not illegal either." He looked pointedly at Green Lantern's ring. 

"He's using alien tech to commit crimes on Earth." John paused. "And he's your nemesis anyhow, so why am I the one arguing this?"

Clark shrugged. "The hoverpacks Lex used last year are on aisle 4. **Hoverpacks** , GL. Tell me you never wanted one when you were a kid. So Lex didn't invent it himself... could you resist it if you were in here shopping?"

"That reminds me," Green Lantern turned back to the counter. "How is Luthor paying for all this anyhow?"

"The Lex has a very strong mental clarity and focus." The swamp creature clumped his way out from behind the counter and led them through the winding twists of the aisles to a display counter.

Clark eyed them. "Snow globes?"

The alien hummed. "The Lex called them that as well. It must be something in your culture. They are sensory books."

"Books?" Both Green Lantern and Superman looked dubiously at them.

Unlocking the case with what looked like a mossy twig, the proprietor took down two of them and handed them over.

When Clark touched his, he was surrounded by the feel of wonder and adventure, seeing a dusty surface below him, a kaleidoscope of stars above. He ran, lighter than air yet still lightly tethered to the ground, each step increasing the delight, the accomplishment. Joy. Fun. Reaching out for something and fulfilling a dream long held.

Clark put it down, blinking off the sensations. He recognized the moon's surface, and the stars above it. Lex had always wanted to go to the moon.

"Are they... all like that?" 

"Each series has 5000 in the set, individually numbered. We are all sold out of the earliest sets, other than my display – I keep #1 for the shop. Each series is completely different and unique. The Lex has many senses upon which to draw and is adapt at focusing them into the books."

Now that Clark looked closer, he could make out faint images within the globes. Or maybe that was an effect of him looking closer and them revealing inside. There was one... a cookie? He picked it up.

Laughter, wonder, delight. The smell of fresh baking, the tones of acceptance and teasing. The taste of goodness right out of the oven, the miracle that someone would let him.

Clark quickly put it down again. He recognized his mom's kitchen. So many years ago.

"That one is a favorite with the young who are part-way to adult-hood. The acceptance is poignant." The proprietor gestured towards the middle shelf and the featured display. "This is the latest."

There were wooden beams amongst the snow... and a ... bowtie? Clark hesitantly touched.

Longing. Love. Friendship. Desire. Restraint. A careful distance, a reaching out, but only so far. The smells of hay and evening sun. The touch of cloth being folded into a tie. A heart, beating so close, only a hand away, if one dared. Green eyes looking richly back at him, tempered as his were. A moment, suspended in time, forever to be cherished. 

Clark reeled back, taking steps away before he knelt down, his head spinning.

"Superman!" A green aura started to light up.

"I'm okay," Clark put a stop to that before anything could happen. "I just wasn't expecting..."

The alien peered worriedly down, one eyestalk extending out before going back to the normal resting place in the socket. "I apologize, alien. It is more intense than the others... people have been waiting for the new release – they want more. They have experienced the ones before and so asked for another. The Lex is _very_ popular among the ... you would say, teenagers."

Clark barked a laugh. "I can see why." He stood up again and looked at the globe. 

"A gift?" the proprietor said anxiously, already opening a drawer with the sets.

He really should refuse. Clark already knew he wouldn't. "Can I have number one thousand?"

Both Green Lantern and the alien looked at him. Clark shrugged, embarrassed. He wasn't going to explain. GL eyed him, but didn't pursue it, not there. The proprietor opened a different drawer, checked the boxes, and took one out, holding it out to him.

"Thank you." Clark took it gingerly, but the effect couldn't be felt through the box. "I'll go talk to Lex, GL. Maybe we can restrict his uses of the... toys... to more appropriate circumstances. He seems to have a good relationship here, and should value it."

"If you say so," Green Lantern replied doubtfully, an eyebrow raised. But he let it be.

...

"To what do I owe the honor?" Lex said, standing up from his desk as Superman came in through the balcony. The alien had actually sent warning ahead of time, instead of simply barging on it, so Lex had decided to treat him like a visitor instead of an intruder. He held a hand out to the chair on the other side of the desk. "Can I get you a drink?"

The alien smiled, a hesitant, shy look that was utterly strange when coupled with that bright red and blue uniform, bisected with yellow. "Ty nant?"

Lex involuntarily sucked in a breath. He hadn't drunk any of that mineral water in years. Carefully, he put his game face back on and faced the alien imperviously.

Said alien put a box on the table between them.

Lex looked, but didn't touch.

With a huff of amusement, Superman untied the wrap and the box automatically unfolded down and created a little pedestal that raised the snow globe up in the air.

Oh.

It figured that Superman would finally find Lex's supplier right after this one. Why couldn't he have found it last year? Lex gritted his teeth and looked up, firmly willing himself not to blush.

Superman reached up and took the cape off, draping it over the chair. It was a symbolic gesture... and one he'd never made before.

"Lex... we need to talk." Clark looked directly into Lex's eyes and smiled that shy smile again.

With a sigh, Lex glanced down at the globe and remembered what he'd put into it. He closed his own eyes. "Okay."

* * *

END

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> I was already over the word limit. You can imagine what happens next. :)
> 
> [Clexmas](http://clexmas.livejournal.com/) postings going on now - gifts and stocking stuffers. Head on over for more Clexy goodness. Some cross-posts to the AO3 collection, but not all, so check out the LJ community for the rest - and more coming. ^^


End file.
